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This episode I host Brazilan dj Tee Cardaci. The key to Tee Cardaci’s international success as a DJ, producer and creative director is an implicit understanding that funk is a universal language. Over a DJ career that spans 24 years and counting, Cardaci has toured through 33 countries, produced countless music events, and shared the stage with groundbreaking musical luminaries. His uncompromising pursuit of pushing music forward has seen him rocking dancefloors from San Francisco’s most revered groove temples and the United Kingdom’s biggest festivals to private villa parties in Ibiza — and even at Brazil’s biggest women’s prison.

His global vision of dance music is diverse and eclectic yet firmly rooted in the canon of black music, including deep dives into funk and soul, disco, house and boogie and flirtatious forays into post-punk, psychedelic and old-school hip-hop. As a lifetime collector of music, his knowledge of multiple genres, from the mainstream to the most obscure, is among the world’s elite. Above all, his gift of connecting with people of all persuasions and in all situations through the power of music makes memories.

Although he began DJing in 1991 while living on the East Coast of the United States, the chronicles of a life that would be dedicated to the singular passion of music started being written much earlier. Cardaci moved west to San Francisco in 1997 to work for the seminal dance label Hardkiss Music, and it was in the City by the Bay where his style blossomed and evolved. He anchored several DJ residencies at notable hotspots like Liquid, where he played for four years, and The Top, where their opening happy hour DJs were Justin Martin and Sammy D, now known as a Dirty Bird artist and member of PillowTalk, respectively.

From his current home base in Rio de Janeiro, Cardaci plays at the most exclusive spots in the city. But he also maintains his healthy connection to the underground, playing free parties from the beaches of Ipanema to high atop the favelas.

As a producer, Cardaci has released music as part of the group 2 Block Radius, created timely edits under the Sine Qua Non moniker, and has explored other aliases including The Beat Nicker and Teeski At The GoGo. He has always classified himself primarily as a DJ, but his productions have gained a strong and dedicated following on Soundcloud and through an international roster of supportive DJs such as Severino Panzeta (Horse Meat Disco), Kev Beadle, Mark Quark, Finn Cambell Notman (The Groovers), Sergio Fedasz (GO Bang/Synthetigers) and Hesohi. Severino even contributed a remix to last year’s 12-inch single release from 2 Block Radius on San Francisco label Uncut Records.

“I think my musical knowledge and the depth of my crates is strong enough to go head to head with the best DJs of their genre,” notes Cardaci, “but what I feel I can do that sets me apart is combine the best tunes of all these genres and all these eras in one cohesive set, depending on the venue, crowd, time of day or night and general vibe of the party.”